John c



(N0 M odel.)

J. 0. FRENCH. I LAST.

Patented June 13, 1893.

Wimesses UNITED STATES PATENT CFFICEQ JOHN C. FRENCH, OF CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

LAST.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 499,669, dated June 13, 1893.

Application filed September 16, 1892. Serial No. 446,045. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JOHN C. FRENCH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Concord, in the county of Merrimac and State of New Hampshire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shoe-Lasts; and Ido hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to the manufacture of heelless shoes and applies more especially to the construction of the required lasts.

The object of the invention is to provide lasts upon which heelless shoes may be produced having their heel portion well rounded on the inside to conform as nearly as possible to an infants heel, and flat on their bottom or under side.

The invention consists in an improved method of making shoes comprising the novel form of last, which will be fully set forth in the following specification and claim and clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming a part of same, of which- Figure 1, is a cross-section taken through the widest partof a so called hand-turned heelless shoe, and the last upon which it is first formed. Fig. 2, is a similar representation of the second or finishing last, upon which a shoe is placed right side out after having been sewed. Fig. 3, represents one of my improved lasts in perspective, showing the groove in the heel portion to gradually vanish near the shank.

Shoes having as nearly as possible a fiat tread, at least for the heel portion, are quite an important factor to children when acquiring the art of walking. To accomplish this in the manufacture of shoes, the edge of the sole must be considerably thickened by the insertion of a rand between the sole and upper, to do which, in the manufacture of hand-turnedshoes, two lasts are requiredeach being of the special form shown.

A, represents the last upon which a shoe is formed and sewed,while turned inside out.

. A,is the last upon which the hand-turned shoe must be placed to be finished, and this same last may be used for making a shoe which is not hand-turned, and which is made with an insole.

B, is the outside sole of a shoe. B, is an insole. C, represents the leather of the upper and D, is the rand by which the outside sole is made flat.

The merits of ashoe made upon such alast as I show in Fig. 1, were set forth in Letters Patent No. 429,264, granted to me and issued the 3d of June, 1890,but in order to carry that invention into practice, it becomes necessary to provide the last A,upon which the hand turned shoes are formed,-with the horizontal groove, a, into which the edges of the sole B, are crimped and tacked down to the last. The rand D, is next tacked down,

then the upper C, when both are ready to be sewed by hand to the sole. The groove a, is rendered necessary in the last, A, in order to dispose of as much of the thickness and extra width of the sole B, and rand D, as is in excess of the thickness of the ordinary sole at its edge, so that the shoe may be as perfectly formed inside out, as is the ordinary hand-turned shoe, which is the same thickness at the edges of its sole as at its center.

The finishing last B,is practically the same as is the forming last B, with the exception of the groove a.

The advantages of my improvement must be seen readily by any one who takes the trouble to investigate;the use of which produces a shoe curved on its inside to fit the heel of the wearer, and Hat on the outside or "bottom to conform to the floor, thus keeping the heel of ones foot always in the center of the heel of the shoe which prevents the common tendency to run over.

Having described my invention, what I claim is A last having the bottom of its heel portion well rounded, and having a groove form ed horizontally in the side of said heel near the bottom thereof, substantially for the reasons specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN C. FRENCH.

Witnesses:

J. B. THURsToN, II. J. ORIPPEN. 

